The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1887-08-10
YES. He DID.

bniif. intellectual ieokine snannf 80 liz
was head salesman in large Broadway
publishing house. As he stood in the
store one morning leaning against an &C
tavo wonderfulIy-cheap-for-this-greatest.
of-novelists-snadaine edition Of Dickens,
be held in his hand the following note,
and wore on his face look oftbe deepest
pepiexify;
wHEx's wHIN, May ~, 1884.
DssR Ma. yELIUN: Papa has at last
consented to your calling He is very &c
centric. however. and insists that when
Won do call al your clothing shall be en-
tinelv of silk fabrics. ] hope you under
stand. In fact. he will not receive you If
YOU do not comply think you had bet
ter come up on Saturday afternoon and
cil in the evening. rs perhaps We can
spend SUNDAY together. sincerely yours,
SYMMETRY WHEN
OF silk fabrics. What in the name Of
nonsense had silk fabrics to do with the
girl he loved For he loved Symmetry
When. did Mr.. Nellum. He had loved
her from the time he first met her that
winter at a fiat literary reception. Tins
means either literary reception in hat
81 something else, as the taste Of the visi-
tors may prefer
Mr.. vellum had for several years been
ready and willing 10 commit matrimony.
He had saved and inherited colnforta-
BILE amount Of money and had been Ike
many, men, resting quiesoent in the hands
of fate. Fate had been somewhat dila-
tory. but when she nudged Mr.. Nellum's
upper vest pocket with one hand and
pointed the index finger Of the other
hand a, Symmetry When, NJ. Nellun
knew instantly that the waited for visi-
tant had come at last Miss When was
large. round, blue eyed, merry mouthed
and tender hearted girl Of -, with those
dreams undreamed in her look and in
her sympathy that are 50 beautiful in
themselves and so soensiaving % the manly
heart. She lived in some small spot on
the map Of Connecticut, and had queer
old father, Nellum heard, but for these
he cared little He was devoted % her
a. constantly with her as circumstances
permitted during the whole Of her visit.
He would have proposed to her outright
but for the fact that he never had met
her father, that-to him-very important
obstacle. Mr.. Unity When.
Unity when vas character. His
house was a richly furnished but quaint
and rambling one story building, which
had been nicknaaled When's Whim by
the countryside, name whose eternal fit I
ness made it stick and stay. he was Wild
over or as many years' Loneliness ss sym
metry's age. lie had tive absorbing PAS
sions. one was Symmetry and the other
was electricity. but which stood first in
has affection. nobody could tell. If SYM
metry was his daughter, electricity was
his hobby II the former was an adora- f.
ton. the latter was a mania. Symmetry
herselfcould not have told which interest 1
was paramount. and if it was beyond her
ability it Was beyond that Of anybody, for
outside Of her be rarely spoke TO a soul /
He was a little, thin old man, with long
white hair and eyes as sharp as rats
He looked like sindbad's friend He
was rich, deeply tersed in his fayorite
study. and suspicious of everything else
under the sun except his daughter
When she came home from New York |
and iimidly hinted that there was ano'h- /
er man in the world besides her father, he
repressed his natural Indignation like a
self restraining Nesuvius, or rather .Etna. 1
When she dared suggest, however that !
that other man might call at the house
-Etna ernpted with roar and Symmetry 1
was buried in the ashes of paternal ii,dig- I
nation. Shedug herself out however, and (
returned to the attack. The dampness
Of loving maiden's tears gradually
checked the blaze of his quite uncon-
sciously selfish fires. II finally got them
under control and put them out. The old
gentleman at last consented, upon condi- [
tions, but the conditions were almost rs
bad as no consent al all.
I" Its no use talkin, sym" said he.
" You've been 10 FarmingtOn an know
probly a great deal more'n any girl |
oughter. They allers learn great deal |
more'n they oughter at a boardin' school. I
But yer don't know anything like as
much as yer father, an We won't if We live |
ter be 1000 years old. tell ye I'm right |
about this. don't keer how much the /
feller says he loves yer. l want to know
how much git up an git hes got, to fight
his way an yourn through the world with.
Now, git up an git in a man is nothin, in
the world but 'lectricity. Lemme meas
ure his 'leectricity an then III tell yer
what think of him mighty quick"
~Oh. papa, How absurd protested
poor, Perplexed and bothered symmetry
absurd nothin' Amt life force and
1ectricity the same thing? Aint the
nerves the finest lectrical conductors
known, an amt every one Of 'em insu-
lated as perfect as an ocean cable? Hain't
Herbert Spencer come round square toed
10 admit it, when first off ne wouldn't
hear TO it ten years ago? ! tell We I'm
right Sym. know I'm right Its your
happiness I'm thinkin of, not mine.
Girls don't know nothin'. They know
little enough after they're married, but
before that they might a. well be babes
in lace caps"
But, papa, what is il you want Doc
mean Mr.. Nellum-to do?r
want him 10 wear silk undeclothes
when he comes up here, an a silk mixed
suit. | guess they won't hurt him.
wear EN- myself and they never hurt me"
But how can write him such
thing2"
You'll have 10 iigger that out for your
self You've been to school enough,
seems TO me-
Oh, dearlT sighed Symmetry, as she
bent to her task. And with many burn
ing blushes and not a few sobs she used
up whole quire Of note paper before she
finally achieved the somewhat noncom-
initial communication which found its
way TO Mr.. Nellums hands
Mr.. Nellunl, however, was acquainted
with none of these circumstances. He
was as completely perplexed and aston
ished as shad which had thoughtlessly
migrated from the river up a water pipe